Animal-trap.



PATENTED DEC. 5, 1905.

R. cHAssE;

ANIMAL TRAP.

AITPLIGATION FILED MAR.27, 1905.

A TTOHNE Y UNITED STATES PATENT ornron.

MANUFACTURING COMPANY, PORATION OF NEW YORK.

OF MIDDLETOWN, NEW YORK, A COR- ANIM L-TRAP.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 5, 1905.

Application filed March 2'7. 1905. Serial No. 252,144.

'- ily set without danger of being sprung durstruction and of but few parts,

ment.

ing the setting operation and which at the ,same time will be'very sensitive to any movement of the tripping-arm.

A further object of my invention is to pro vide a trap which will be economical in conwhich may be easily andreadily assembled.

With these and other ends in view the invention consists in certain novel features 'of construction and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter fully described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view of my improved trap in its set adjust- Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a detached enlarged view of the tripping-arm. Fig. 4 is an enlarged and partlysectional view of a part of the trap, and Fig.

4 a similar view showing a rounded and,

hemispherical-shapedbearing.

Referring to the drawings, 5 represents the base or body of the trap, preferably made of wood and formed with the well or receptacle 6. It will of course be understood that any number of these wells may be'employed and the trapping mechanism duplicated; but in its simplest form it will be made with but one receptacle, as illustrated in Fig. 1. Into this well or receptacle 6 extends the tripping-arm 7, preferably bent, as illustrated in the several figures of the drawingsthat is, with the upper vertical end 8, lower vertical end 9, and the intermediate slanting portion 10, the lower end 9 being slightly curved or hollowed out, as shown at'll, the arm when so shaped and when in its set position extending'backwardly or inwardly into the well or receptacle 6, as illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, and 3. In

the upper end 80f the arm are formed two circular openings 12, through which passes a staple 13, pivoting or hinging the arm to' the block or base 5, the rounded-portion or bend of the staple extending outwardly and slightly beyond the surface of the end 8 of the arm-\7 a sul ficient distance to allow the spring 14 to rest thereon when the trap is set.

In the manufacture of the trap care should be taken that the staple extend the required distance beyond the surface of the arm, as otherwise it will be impossible for the spring to'rest thereon, and therefore impossible to set the trap. On the other hand, it should not extend outwardly too far, as in such event the trap will not be sufficiently sensitive in that'too great a movement of the end 8 of the arm will be required in order to force the spring 1 1- ofi of the staple. As the blocks 5 in practice are usually made by machinery and uniform in size, the machine for driving the staples into the block is so set or adjusted as to drive them down a certain predetermined distance, so that I have experienced no difficulty whatever in having the bend of the staple extend .outwardly to exactly the prgpplr distance.

I simultaneously strike the metal between them downwardly, formin a bearing 15, upon which the arm rocks, 13%1 being formed as far below the openings 12 as possible in order that the distance from said bearing-point to that part of the arm against;

e bearing-point 89.. en forming the two holes or openings 12,1"

which the spring rests is greatest possible. In

other words, the lever extending from the bearing-point of the arm to that portion thereof against which rests thespring 14 should be as lon as possible, so that a slight movement 0 the opposite end 9 of the arm will result in as great a movement as possible of the upper end 8, thus rendering the trap very sensitive. The metal between the openings 12 is struck downwardly to form a bearing, which gradually rises to the highest point and is then quickly or sharply bent to merge into the metal of the arm, as illustrated in Fig. 4, the effect being that-the end 8 of the arm tilts or moves outwardly suddenly when the lower end 9 is moved or forcedinwardly in the. well or receptacle 6, and by reason of the fact that the highest or bearing point of the struck-down metal is lowered or removed a considerable distance below the place where the free end of the spring 14 bears against the end 8 of the arm said end 8 will move a sufhcient distance to throw the end of the spring off of the bend of the staple upon a slight inward movement of the end 9. Heretofore I have struck the metal downwardly between the openings in the form of an are or sector of a circle, as illustrated at 15, Fig. 4 but by numerous experiments have learned that to shape the struck-down metal, as above described, and shown in Fig. 4, results in rendering the trap far more sensitive, in that the bearing-point in the latter is constantthatis, at the highest point of the struck-down metalwhile in the instance of a rounded bearing the bearingpoint constantly changes as the tripping-arm moves.

The extreme end 16 of the spring 14 is bent at right angles to facilitate the setting of the same, the opposite end 17 being curved and held in position by means of the staples 18, the staple 19 being also utilized for guiding the free end of the spring in its vertical movement.

In practice the bait is inserted in the well or receptacle 6 behind the arm 7. The free end of the spring'is then raised and placed over and upon the bend of the sta 1e 13. As the mouse forces backwardly the ower end 9 of the arm in order to reach the bait, the forward movement of the end 8 forces the free end of the spring ofi of the staple, the spring thereupon assuming the position as shown in dotted lines, Fig. 1, and gripping the mouse between itself and the block or base.

I am aware that traps have heretofore been made or formed with a receptacle or well into which extends the tripping-arm, the latter being adapted to release the free end of the spring; but I am not aware that any tripmade wherein the metal ping-arm has been between the staple-openings has been struck downwardly to form a bearing like that herein shown and described, and,

Therefore, havingfully described my i 11v ention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an animaltrap, the combination with a body formed with a bait-receptacle, of a spring secured at one end to said body and a trippingarm pivoted to said body and extending inwardly into said receptacle, and with which tripping-arm engages the free end of said spring, the metal of the pivoted end of said tripping-arm being struck inwardly to form a bearing-point, substantially as described.

2. An animal trap, comprising a body formed with a bait-receptacle, a trippingarm and spring engaging therewith, said tripping-arm being formed with two openings therein for the passage of a retainingstaple, the metal between and below said openings being struck inwardly to form a bearing-point for said tripping-arm, substantially as described.

3. An animal trap comprising a body formed with a bait-receptacle, a spring secured thereto and a tripping-arm, one end of said tripping-arm being formed with two circular openings for the passage of a retainingstaple, the metal between and below said openings being struck inwardly to form a bearing, the metal of the bearing gradually increasing in height to the highest point and then sharply bent to merge into the arm, substantially as described.

Signed at Middletown, in the county of Orange and State of New York, this 22d day of March, A. D. 1905.

RAPHAEL CIIASSE.

Witnesses D. B. OoNKLING, HENRY B. WIsNnn. 

